LIVING A DREAM

Wednesday

May 22, 2013 at 9:45 AM

By Ed Patinoepatino@hillsdale.netST. LOUIS — Football has always been a big part of Sean Hooey's life.From his standout prep career in Hillsdale County through his collegiate career at the University of Cincinnati, the Litchfield native has carried a dream of one day playing on Sundays in the National Football League."I was a football player for Halloween when I was little," Hooey said.The dream is now becoming a reality.Hooey signed a standard rookie contract with the NFL's St. Louis Rams last week after participating in the team's rookie minicamp. He has been in St. Louis since signing the deal, studying the playbook and preparing for the Rams' training camp this summer."It's something I've worked for since I was a little kid, and it's like a dream come true," Hooey said. "It's starting to sink in now, and I love it. It feels great."In all, 27 players took part in the rookie minicamp. As the only offensive lineman in the camp, Hooey was able to work one-on-one with the Rams position coaches. Throughout the three day camp, Hooey participated in several classroom sessions, walk throughs and offensively line drills.Still, it was unclear if Hooey was going to get the contract offer."They had a few open spots and said they would let me know it 24 to 48 hours," Hooey said. "On the last day I was packing up my things and was getting ready to leave, and about 8 a.m. the Rams called with an offer."The Rams were actually the third NFL team Hooey visited. He participated in a "local day" with the Cincinnati Bengals, in which players from the University of Cincinnati and other local colleges came in for a workout. Hooey also participated in a minicamp with the Miami Dolphins a week prior to visiting St. Louis."I was positive going into St. Louis because I had good feedback from the coaches in Miami," Hooey said. "There was only one player signed by Miami, and I still wanted to try and St. Louis was my next option."The minicamp with the Rams was different than the one with the Dolphins. In Miami, the camp featured more hard-noses practices according to Hooey. In St. Louis, the classroom sessions and learning the plays were the major parts of the camp."With St. Louis it was more mentally demanding," he said. "You had to take what you learned in the classroom and carry it over to the field in the drills."Hooey proved that he was a smart player in high school. After starting out at Litchfield, Hooey transferred to Hillsdale High. Playing offensively line, tight end and defensive line, Hooey made a big impact on the Hornets, who captured their fourth straight Southern Michigan Activities Association title during his senior year."Sean was a really good player for us, and teams would run away from him and we would run behind him," Hillsdale coach Mark Lemerand said. "Back then you could see he was a very big kid, and that's something you can't coach. But he had a lot of talent and was a smart player. He was very coachable, and it's nice to see things working out for him."His father Tim Hooey played linebacker in college at Western Kentucky and Montclair State. Sean followed in his footsteps, playing at the University of Cincinnati. He appeared in four games as a reserve offensive lineman during the 2009 season. That season, the Bearcats rushing attack went over 200 yards three times and set school records for points and touchdowns. That season, Cincinnati won a school record 12 games, jumped to No. 3 in the polls and earned a BCS berth, playing in the Sugar Bowl against Florida.Hooey battled injuries for most of his collegiate career, but that didn't deter him from his NFL dream."Sean is a good kid and a hard worker, and he deserves this chance," Lemerand said. "We are really proud of Sean, and it's nice to see one of our kids getting the chance to play at this level."With the signing behind him, Hooey is preparing to his next challenge, making the team when the Rams break for training camp this summer."It's very exciting, but the season is far away," Hooey said. "Right now I'm focusing on learning the plays. The step from college to the pros is huge, but I'm going to do my best."Hooey credits his family and coaches to helping him get this opportunity."I couldn't have made it without having good people in my life," he said. "They've all been a big help in getting me to where I'm at."